Catalonia’s parliament declared independence from Spain in a historic vote on Friday (27 October), setting the scene for a showdown with Madrid, which has announced it would strip the breakaway region of its autonomy.

Two wealthy northern regions in Italy voted on Sunday (22 October) in favour of having increased independence from Rome, in a non-binding referendum that set the stage for negotiations on more autonomy with the central government.

“We are confident that there is a possibility to reach an agreement” to revise the posted workers directive, Estonian labour minister Jevgeni Ossinovski said Monday while arriving at a meeting in Luxembourg. Ossinovski, who chairs the meeting as EU presidency, said he was “confident that there is a will” from member states to overcome differences on the length of posting and whether to include transport in the directive.